It’s true that virtualization can help you reduce your hardware budget. However, cutting hardware costs is just one of the many benefits of virtualization — and arguably the least important over the long term. By creating a virtual pool of server and storage resources that can be quickly allocated to new applications and easily moved from primary to backup locations, virtualization can make an IT organization more agile, resilient and responsive.

FusionStorm can perform an assessment of an organization’s environment and demonstrate how to utilize virtualization to streamline operations and reduce risk. The right tools enable administrators to easily create new virtual systems and perform other essential management tasks.

One such task is provisioning — the setup, installation and configuration of servers. This has traditionally been a tedious and time-consuming manual process that opens the door for a variety of configuration errors. Once a virtual server has been created and properly configured, however, it can be saved as a so-called “gold image” and then deployed multiple times. There is no need to purchase and configure new hardware — virtual servers can be swapped in and out fluidly based upon business needs. The configuration can also be easily modified if a change is required due to spikes in utilization, changes in application functionality, virus contamination or some other external event.

Disaster recovery is also enhanced by rapid provisioning capabilities. Redundant servers can easily be created by provisioning virtual machines rather than purchasing additional hardware. Recovery of the gold image is a single-step process that greatly improves the ability to meet time-to-recovery targets. And because virtualized servers do the work of more physical servers, organizations can reduce their hardware investment in a separate disaster recovery site.

These are just a couple of examples of the benefits you can derive from your virtualized environment. The key is to establish specific goals and take a phased approach. FusionStorm’s experts can develop a roadmap to measure where you are currently, what the next steps are and how to reach the desired end result. Call my direct line, 808.357.0702, or e-mail jvarel@fusionstorm.com to discuss how FusionStorm can provide the resources, discipline and methodology to help you to realize the full potential of virtualization.

John Varel
CEO, Founder, Chairman
FusionStorm